Bobby Webster Remains "Opportunistic" for Offseason Trade

The 2026 NBA offseason has begun for general manager Bobby Webster and the Toronto Raptors after falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs. Although they put up a great fight to force the series to go seven games, ultimately durability got the best of them.

Immanuel Quickley sat out the entire series with a hamstring strain, Brandon Ingram sat the final two games with a heel injury he had previously been playing through, Jakob Poeltl was limited from the lower back strain he suffered during the regular season, Scottie Barnes was playing through a quad contusion he suffered during the series, and Collin Murray-Boyles was pushing through the thumb sprain that limited him for months. 

While it’s hard to judge the present core of the roster because of all these injuries, Webster was able to at least get a taste of what this team could look like at its peak with more development, experience, and durability. The question now becomes whether he believes that is good enough to contend in an Eastern Conference that is set to be far more competitive next season. 

In his final media session of the season, Webster talked about his willingness to make trades and improve the roster this offseason. 

“I think for those of you who know us, we’re always going to be opportunistic in any trade market,” said Webster. “It’s the reason why we’ve kept all of our first-round picks. Financially, we’re well-positioned in the future to pick on money, if we have to. If you want to double-down on defense, or you think the offense needs help, that’s sort of where we’re looking at it, which is, it have to materially move us ahead from a contender standpoint.” 

Webster and the Raptors were quiet at the midseason Feb. 5th deadline this year. With several rumors swirling around superstars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Davis, Domantas Sabonis, Jaren Jackson Jr., and others, the only trades they made were to get under the first apron of the luxury tax and supply more frontcourt depth with Trayce Jackson-Davis, who didn’t play at all in the postseason. 

That doesn’t mean they are reluctant to make the big deals happen. It was Masai Ujiri who was at the helm of the team’s decision-making at the time, but the Raptors notably made trades for Brandon Ingram, Kawhi Leonard, and others in recent memory. With an all-important offseason ahead of them, it’s a great time to possess all of their own first-round picks to make a big splash for a needle-moving superstar. 

There is a financial problem that comes with making trades of higher magnitude. The Raptors’ current starting five is making over $163 million next season alone, and the total salary cap for each team is set at $165 million. This means the team will almost certainly be entering into the luxury tax, first apron, or even second apron if they want to try and build a contender for next season. 

Webster discussed the Raptors’ ownership’s commitment to improving the team, including the dangerous entrance of the luxury tax. 

“We timed it perfect when we won the title and went into the tax,” said Webster. “I think there’s always been that notion [from ownership] that, ‘when the time is right, come ask and we’ll deliver.’ Going into the season, we realized this might not be the championship-contending team, and so we held it off, but going forward, I think it’ll be a bit more on how does this group grow, but also, what moves we make over the summer. We have full support [from ownership], and I think whenever the time is right, we’ll be ready.”